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It’s a dark, dreary evening in Cork and the long road leading to the Marquee is covered in sullen looking parents and teenagers scrambling to avoid the rain. Once inside the tent, the support arrives en-queue with our arrival. Having escaped the gloominess outside, we’re eager to hear something to lift the spirits. Not so lucky […]

We’ve arrived at the Marquee and there’s only a handful of people stage side. The lead singer of the support band is timidly introducing their second song. The tracks are surprising, never really revealing themselves immediately; changing form – from slow melodic introductions, interlaced with dream-pop vibes – into grunge-rock crescendos. As the set continues, […]

“I remember when rock was young”, that’s how it goes right? It’s not just a lyric we’ll hear on this balmy evening resting beside Cork City Marina, it’s a statement that Elton John (and the large majority of his audience tonight) can attest to with conviction. At 70 years of age, Elton has brought his […]

It’s a bright Sunday evening in the people’s republic and as we arrive we’re greeted with the announcement that Glen Hansard will arrive to the stage in 10 minutes. It falls on deaf ears for the most part, the sold out audience happy enough to loiter around the bar. It suits us, sauntering comfortably to […]

Yes. Returning from their voluntary hiatus, Two Door Cinema Club are back and they’ve reinvented themselves as a disco infused synth-pop behemoth; or at least that was the goal. Sticking with Jacknife Lee (producer from Beacon) the boys from Bangor have decided to diverge completely from the Two Door we know. Are third albums tricky? […]

In her last album, Regina Spektor told us she “pitied the violins”. However, Remember Us To Life turns its back to that by offering one of the most musically rich albums of Spektor’s career to date, with plenty of violins and strings to boot. The album meanders through her inspiration and genres; some we’ve heard […]

It’s the final night of the Live at the Marquee festival in Cork city and it’s been an amazing couple of weeks. Some of the biggest Irish and International acts have played in sunshine and in rain under the lights of the marquee. Pixies return after two years as part of their 2016 world tour […]

Walking into the Marquee on a glorious Wednesday evening, we are met with signs and warnings from security that under no circumstances would photography or mobile phones be tolerated. My initial thoughts are that Henley may becoming a cantankerous old man; however, it’s obvious from the beginning that what he’s hoping to achieve with this performance is […]

It stands to reason that no matter how old you are, you’ve listened to and loved a song that was created or at least co-written by Chic frontman and co-founder, Nile Rodgers. Whether it’s one of their original disco hits or Rodgers’ latest involvement with Daft Punk’s concept album, Random Access Memories, the band have cemented […]

In 2011 they released the somewhat jarring I’m With You and were rewarded with an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Of course they deserved the accolade, but let’s be fair, their penultimate album wasn’t the best; and not penultimate, in the sense that this is their final…because for all intents and […]

The atmosphere for Live at the Marquee this year has been amazing. Any other attendances I have made all met with “shur we we’re blessed with the weather. It’s a powerful day!”. Leave it to Slayer and Anthrax to bring the pathetic fallacy to Cork. Torrential rain and thunder are on the cards for the […]

At 8 pm, support act The Academic shuffle on to stage. These four young men from Mullingar have a proven talent for songwriting and having seen them on several occasions we can honestly say it’s a pleasure to see them back in The Marquee; the last occasion having supported the Pixies. The kick drum is […]

Celebrating 25 years as a band is quite a milestone but to do so in front of three sold-out audiences who can recite your lyrics verbatim even more-so. Standing in the audience for The Frames at Live at The Marquee is a sight to behold. Having performed twice last week at Iveagh Gardens, this is not […]

Longitude, a denotation of length; in this case a measure of time considering The Frames are celebrating their 25th anniversary with sell out performances in both Iveagh Gardens and Live at the Marquee. Veering away from rock and roll clichés, there won’t be a Greatest Hits to help mark the occasion but a mixtape of sorts instead; a hand-picked […]